My slides from Casual Connect on the topic:

1. 1 million downloads in a month
tips for indies
simon@frenzoo.com

2. Top 6 hangover remedies
1. Prostaglandin inhibitors
2. Tolfenamic acid
3. Vitamin B6
4. Chlormethiazole
5. Pedialyte
6. Hair of the Dog (alcohol)
Source: Wikipedia
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3. Poll
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4. Who’s this talk for?
Those with a:
• Small team
• Small budget
• Small base
• Who don’t “have a friend” at Apple
• BUT, do have a GREAT game in development…
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5. A bit about us
Me Girl™ - 3d games for women
How we started
• Small team
• In Hong Kong
• Our first game
• Little funding
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6. Poll Design & Development
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7. Pick your niche
• Can you name any of the angry
birds clones?
• Be unique. Be early.
Bullet hell MMO 3d fashion Social music quiz
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8. Inject personality & brand
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9. Have a unique hook
“Barbie for the iPad Age”
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10. Maximize IRL word of mouth
H
O (don’t forget audio)
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11. Maximize social sharing
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12. Poll Launch Preparation
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13. Beta on Android
• Get early user feedback
• Fast iteration cycles
• Account & app flexibility
• Benchmark retention & monetization
• “Protect” your commercial launch
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14. A/B test
• Tune major parameters
• DIY or use 3rd party (Swrve etc)
• Get your game in best shape possible before launch
Don’t rush & “accept” statistically insignificant results
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15. Publisher deal (if possible)
Good:
• Advances
• Minimum guarantees
• Marketing credits
• Guaranteed minimum spend
• Acceptable level of lock in
And/Or the social platforms
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16. Invest in a trailer
• $180
• Ready in 3 days
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17. Invest in screenshots
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18. Maximize your category choices
• Look at where the heavy spenders are
• Look at where the relative competition is
• Keep on top of the changes (eg iOS6)
Ratio top grossing vs top free composition
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19. A/B test your app icon
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20. A/B test name & descriptions
• SEO, can use keyword tools (web/mobile)
• 10% better conversion rate could mean
much faster growth rate
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21. Translate what you can
• Lots of online fast & cheap translation service
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22. Poll Launch and live ops
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23. Consider pricing strategy
Could be multiple times to get limited time window
Important - Take care of your customers
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24. Free App A Day sites
• Potentially useful but track their impact
• Negotiate
• Some will do it for free if it’s interesting enough
• Ask lots of questions – does their audience match
yours?
• Apply the “dodgy” filter
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25. Look for low hanging fruit
Effect of subcategory ranking on downloads
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26. Band together with friends
for cross promotion
• Chartboost
• WaveX
• Applifier
• AppFlood
• etc
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27. Be nimble for new options
Amazon IAP Facebook LINE Apps Windows 8 Next?
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28. Don’t ignore other app stores
• DIY or
• Work with aggregators if you don’t have time
http://wipconnector.com/appstores
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29. Have 6 weeks of updates
prepared in advance
• You’ll be busy with other stuff
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30. Do the social media thing…
• Not just facebook & twitter
• Blogging, forums, youtube, pinterest etc
• Give the community a kickstart
• SEOify everything
• Perfect for interns :)
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31. Summary
• Be unique
• Stay up to date
• Find low hanging fruit
Once you’re off the ground, build on it
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32. Thanks!
Any questions?
simon@frenzoo.com
@simonhk
Blog: IteratingFun.com
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